BROTHERS
by L.FLinkJ.S
Summary: A prodigy who has a lot of time in his hands and a bright future ahead. A child who looked up to him.


**Forgive me for any mistakes or grammar errors. I do hope you enjoy this story.**

 **Disclaimer: This is a Fan fiction. With that being said, we all know what it means.**

* * *

"I am a big brother now...?" A boy asked, hope evident on his eyes. His black hair was styled messily while his brown orbs eyed at his mother expectantly. Seeing his mother nod, his lips formed a grin, raising a fist in the air, "I have a little brother! I am a big brother now! Did you hear that, dad?" He turned to his father, tugging on his father's shirt.

"Yes, yes." His father, Tomeo Hamada, laughed. "I am aware that my wife gave birth to another child." He bent down on his knees, ruffling the boy's already-messy hair, "Are you sure that you are ready to be a big brother? This job might be hard for a six-year old like you." Tomoe eyed his son teasingly.

The boy huffed playfully, crossing his arms in a cute manner. He side-glance, turning away from his father. "I can do it. Besides, I am a big boy now!" He turned to look at his mother, "Right, mom? I am a big boy, right?" His expression turned upside-down, his brows meeting at the center, "What is my little brother's name?"

"Well, your father and I decided to name him Tadashi. It means loyal. Does that sound good to you?" His mother, Maemi, smiled.

"Yup!"

"We should've named him 'Hiro', you know!" Tomeo interjected, "I know you find it lame and all, but it does have a nice ring to it!" He added. Maemi gave him a glare, silencing him up. The boy, Daiki, watched as his parents act like children. Shrugging it off, he just stared at the bundle laying on his mother's arm, excited to see how such a small figure would grow.

* * *

8-months old Tadashi crawled towards his older brother, fascinated by the sight of the robot that the older Hamada is currently holding. Daiki was a genius, a prodigy, an achiever, and inventor at such a young age. A typical 6-years old child would probably be off somewhere, playing on a sand box or with his car toys, but Daiki is not your typical six-year old.

While others find amusement and entertainment with plastic toys, Daiki enjoyed inventing. He just started grasping the whole concept of inventing a few months ago, but it was already an established fact that Daiki Hamada was born to be a tech-genius. The child managed to build his first-ever functioning robot a month after being explained of the basics. It was also no secret that he probably inherited his talent from his parents. After all, a scientist and an inventor would definitely produce a prodigy.

"...ki...Da...ki..." He heard a mumbling. Looking down, he saw his younger brother, seated on the floor. "Da...ki..." Daiki's eyes widened. Putting the robot down, he sat on the floor, just in front of his younger brother. Tadashi crawled closer to him, laughing. "Da...ki!"

"Your...first...word!" He let the information sink in. "Your first word is my name! That was awesome, 'lil Dashi!" He cheered. "Seems like your skills are developing at a fast rate! Don't worry, this will be a secret between the two of us, 'lil Dashi. Give them a surprise, will you?" He winked playfully despite knowing that his brother still don't understand him.

Later that day, when Tadashi spoke the word 'Mama', Daiki suppressed a laugh. He wouldn't want to ruin his mother's happiness by telling her that it wasn't Tadashi's first word. He turned around and headed upstairs to continue with his project.

* * *

It was always a sight-to-see whenever Tadashi would follow his brother and copy whatever he is trying to do. Daiki have nothing against seeing his 3-year old brother follow him around like a little duckling. In truth, he actually find it fun, a way for them to have a brotherly bonding and such.

"Now, just to add a few more calculations..." Daiki held his pen, looking at the blueprint laid on the table before him. Beside him, Tadashi stood, also looking at a blueprint—one of Daiki's previous one—with a pencil in hand. He glanced at his brother once in a while, trying to catch up with his movements.

"Up to copying your brother again, Tadashi?" A new voice greeted.

Looking up, the three-year old squealed, immediately dropping the pencil. He ran up to the newcomer, "Auntie Cassie!" He hugged her legs, looking up at her with delight. "'Dashi gets sweets, right?" He asked hopefully.

"Have you been a good boy?" A nod. "Then, you can have some!"

Daiki, who have been caught up with his calculations, denied the other people's existence around him. The 9-years old boy would usually act seriously during this time. Concentration was, after all, important in his calculations. This help him secure that he didn't miscalculate the formula and the capability of the materials to be use.

Frowning, he re-typed the numbers again to check. "Something is not right..." He mumbled. He then felt a tug on his sleeve. Looking at the source, he saw Tadashi holding up a donut.

"Nii-chan, eat." He smiled.

"Thanks, 'lil Dashi."

* * *

11-years old Daiki would be lying if he said that he is content with how things are progressing in his life. Sometimes, he would gaze out of his classroom window, watching those who are the same age as him play soccer or baseball. There would be times when he would just stay in his room, wishing to be given at least a single day for him to be normal.

Today was one of those days. He laid on his bed, covered in blankets. All efforts by his parents to get him out of it were in vain—as usual. He twist and turn, frustrated with his life. People often say that they would kill just to live his life. He, on the other hand, would do anything just to have a normal life as a normal child. Alas, life doesn't always go your way. While he enjoys his life, there will always be a part of him that despise it.

"Brother?"

He turned, glaring at the figure before him. "What do yo-Oh, Tadashi." His features relaxed, "What is it?"

"Are you sick? You've been in bed all day. I can take care of you, if you want."

"Nah, I'm not sick. Just tired. That's all. Thanks, anyway, 'lil Dashi." He smiled reassuringly, ruffling the boy's hair.

* * *

Tadashi was in school when it happened. It was a happy day at school. The bell rang, a signal that school have ended. He saw his aunt by the gate and he ran up to her, hugging her tight. "Aunt Cass, what are you doing here?" He asked. He saw his aunt's solemn expression, "Tadashi, we need to go somewhere."

The drive was quiet, really quiet. It was then that Tadashi knew that something is wrong. He might not be a prodigy or a genius of some sort like his older brother, but he was a bright kid. He was snapped out of his day dream when the car stopped. He looked out, then saw that they arrived at the hospital.

They got out of the car once Cass found a parking lot. Tadashi followed behind quietly, scanning the area. They went inside the elevator and out when they have reached the 4th floor. A few more walk and they arrived in front of the E.R. The doctor, who seems to be waiting for them for some time, quickly went over to his Aunt and pulled her to the corner.

Tadashi was only eight-years old when he lost both his parents in a car crash caused by drunk-driving of a truck driver. It was said that they were on their way to their work place when the accident happened. Not just that, his older brother's—who was with them because he was on his way to school—body is still missing. The police are still looking for his remains.

He wore black that day. It was his parents' funeral while his older brother was presumed to be dead—that makes three. He watched as the men lowered two caskets, both colored bronze with intricate design. He watched in silence, never letting go of his aunt's hand. After the funeral service, it have started to rain. Hard.

The whole Lucky Cat Cafe was gloomy. Cass looked at the staircase, worried for her nephew's well-being. After the service, they have went home and Tadashi insist that he would like to be alone. The things from their house would be sorted out, and the boy will be moving in with her permanently.

The door of the cafe opened. She turned around and was going to tell whoever that have entered that the cafe was close. She saw a boy. The boy was wet from head to toe. It was as if he spent all his time outside in the rain. His clothes were too big for his own good, and it seems like he came for a reason. The boy looked up, smiling weakly.

"How's Tadashi, Aunt Cass?"

Cass took a few stepped back, disbelief evident in her face. "Wha-How-You're..."

The boy nodded, "I know. Even I was not sure what happened. I remembered the crash, but nothing came to my memory soon after. Then, I woke up in a field, which is in the middle of the forest. Took me a day to walk back while thinking of my predicament. This definitely defies all laws and theories that I know of." He explained hurriedly.

He stepped forward, quickly tripping over his clothes. Immediately, Cass stood beside him. He looked up, "Do you have any spare clothes that I can wear, Aunt Cass? It would be better if it would fit this 4-year old body."

She nodded. "But first, what do you plan to do, Daiki?" She asked.

He shrugged, "Dunno. Certainly, I need a new identity. Daiki Hamada would be a no-no, seeing that the police already announced me dead, and I can't show up looking like this. Besides, this might be a good start. Somehow. Hopefully. I seriously don't know."

"Let's start with a name."

"Hmm..."

' _We should've named him Hiro, you know! I know you find it lame and all, but it does have a nice ring to it!'_

"I think the name 'Hiro' will do, Aunt Cass."

"That was fast."

"I remembered that dad really wanted to name Tadashi with that name, but mom find it very lame, so Tadashi ended up with the name Tadashi." He smiled, reminiscing all time. It was followed by a sneeze, "Uhm...I could really use some spare clothes, Aunt Cass. Pretty please?"

Cass laughed, "Wait for me a bit." Daiki—now Hiro—looked around. Telling Tadashi would be nice. It would do well for both of them. But, he can't really imagine his brother referring to him as the older one when he has this body. And besides, keeping it a secret from his brother is the best idea if he really wanted to start anew under another identity. So that leaves him with the option to convince Tadashi that he is his brother. A younger brother that Tadashi didn't know off. "Wish me luck." He sighed.

Paperwork and what-nots comes in later, he have things to do. Cass came back with a few set of clothes which he presumed to belong to Tadashi when he was younger. Thinking of how his Aunt have that, he will ponder on it later. He grabbed the clothes after saying thank you, insisting that he can change on his own.

* * *

Sometimes, Tadashi doesn't want to see Hiro for the rest of the day. Hiro was like a splitting image of his deceased older brother. Still, he tried to keep them separate as much as possible. He coughed, "Knucklehead, who told you to get yourself sick in the rain?" 14-years old Hiro sighed in exasperation.

Tadashi simply grunted. Hiro sighed, "You know, I really hate it when you become unreasonable. I mean, who in the right mind, would sit on a patchy grass when it was raining? You sat there all day! I know that you miss Mom, Dad, and...Daiki, but I am sure that they wouldn't want to get you sick. Last time I checked, I'm the reckless one. You're supposed to fill in the role of the responsible big brother, you know." Tadashi's reply came in a form of a pout. Hiro sighed for the third time, "I'll just get that soup that Aunt Cass prepared. Don't be such a baby, 'lil Dashi." He teased, disappearing, as he went down the stairs.

That sure caught Tadashi's attention. No one have called him that in a decade. Forcing himself to sit up, he frowned. Why would Hiro refer to him like that? Questions formed on his mind, bringing up former questions that he once had but forgotten. He knew, from the start, that the appearance of Hiro in his life was weird. Going down for dinner, just to find a young boy introducing himself as his brother, is not an everyday occurrence. If so, why would his parents hide the fact that he have another brother?

Puzzle pieces came together in his mind. Daiki's body disappeared. Hiro appeared after the funeral service. They look alike. Somehow shared some traits—quite a lot, actually. Both are prodigies. The similarities between the two are undeniable. It's either Hiro is Daiki's clone or Daiki somehow shrunk. He prefer to believe the former because it was more logical.

Hiro hummed to himself. By now, he's sure that Tadashi formed some conclusion in his mind. Hiro don't really mind. As long as Tadashi realized the basic connection between him and Daiki, explaining his predicament would come out easily. His younger-now-older brother is bright. He is mature enough to comprehend that strangeness of this world.

"Mind sharing what's on your mind that made you smile?" Aunt Cass put the the bowl on the table.

Hiro shrugged, "I was just thinking. It feels like it was just yesterday when he laid on Mom's arms, sleeping while Mom and dad fight over his name. He grew up nicely." His smile widened, "Mom and Dad are proud of him. I just know it."


End file.
